Tampon



G. S. PETERKIN.

TAMPON.

APPLICATION man DEC-30,1918.

Patented Dec. 27, 1921.

' INVENTOR Guy 5. Pefenfl n j F W ATTORNEY PATENT OFFICE.

GUY SHEARMAN PE'IYEEKIN, OF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON.

TAMPON.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 27, 1921.

Application filed December 30, 1918. Serial No. 268,810.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GUY SHEARMAN PETERKIN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Seattle, in the county of King and State of Washington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tampons, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to therapeutical ap' pliances and, especially, to tampons for supporting. and applying medicines to the neck and mouth of the uterus.

The objects of my improvements are, first, to produce a device of this character which is adapted to be medicated and conveniently inserted or withdrawn through the vagina; and, second, to produce a tampon which will serve to retain the medication in contact with the cervix and prevent the escape of the medicine into or through the vagina.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is an anatomical view of a portion of a human body with a tampon in operative position at the uterus cervix. Fi 2 is a plan view of my improved tampon. ig. 3 is a' transverse vertical sectional view of the same in a distended condition. Fig. 4 is a vertical. sectional view showing the tampon in its collapsed condition, as when being withdrawn through the vagina. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the tampon illustrated as being grasped by the jaws of a forceps for inserting the same into and through the va ina.

n carrying out my. invention, I provide a tampon comprised of absorbent and nonabsorbent materials, the non-absorbent ele ment being associated or combined with the absorbent element so that it may be successively used we sheath or a support for the absorbent element and also serves to obviate any loss of medication which may be applied't'o the latter.

More specifically, and referring now to Figs. 2 and 3, the numeral 5 denotes. a body, hereinafter designated as the sheath, formed with a central recess 8 and the rounded perimeter affords a comparatively smooth edge. Secured u on said sheath and concentri'cally thereo is an element comprising vof the sheath recess 8.

The aforesaid absorbent element and the non-absorbent sheath are connected together at their centers, preferably by sewing with thread, indicated by 12, which is also advantageously utilized to secure the end of a cord or tape attachment 13 to the center of the sheath 5,.

In operation, the absorbent is first medicated and then enveloped in the sheath 5 by pursing up the same, as shown cotton 10, 11 I in Fig. 5, in which state the tampon is grasped by a suitable forceps, indicated by and is thereby inserted through a speculum (not shown) through the vagina-until the medicated piece 10 is carried into direct contact with the mouth C (Fig. 1) of the cervix. Y

The operator thereupon disengages his forceps and with the end thereof pushes upwardly against the sheath edges to tuck the same 1nto the annular space (1 between the cervix and the surrounding wall of the vagina. Bythus packing the sheath about the cervix the, latter is supported with the medicatedportion of the tampon in contact with the mouth of the uterus, and the sheath being of a non-absorbent material prevents the escape of the medicine from the cervix into or through the vagina.

To remove the tampon, the patient pulls the same through the vagina by means of the attachment 13, causing the tampon to assume the shape in which it is illustrated in Fig. 4 with the sheath 5 enveloping the medicated portion.

The' constructionand operation ofmy of lambs wool or other material possessing \i d ta on will, it is thought, be unrelatively poor fluid absorbent qualities. Said sheath is desirably of a circular form and about its peripheryis turned'over, as at 6, the folded portion 7 being sewed to the 1 underlying portion.

By such devices said sheath is provided derstood from the foregoing description.

What I claim, is- 1. In a tampon, a body comprising a layer of non-absorbent material having its edges folded upon itself to provide acentral recess, and a layer of absorbent material of approximately the diameter of said recess attached to the upper side of the first-named layer.

2. In a tampon, a body comprising an ele- 5 ment of a fluid-absorbent character, a second element of a relatively non-absorbent character secured only at its center to the underside of the first-named element, said second-named element being of greater diameter than the first-named one to afford material adapted to 10 be packed around the cervix and support the first-named element in juxtaposition with the mouth of the cervix.

Signed at Seattle, Vvashington, this 16th day of December, 1918.

GUY SHEARMAN PETERKIN. 

